[kol-uh-sinth] 
| 1. | a plant, Citrullus colocynthis, belonging to the gourd family, of the warmer parts of Asia, the Mediterranean region, etc., bearing a round, yellow or green fruit with a bitter pulp. |
| 2. | the fruit of this plant. |
| 3. | Pharmacology. the drug derived from the pulp of the unripe but full-grown fruit of this plant, used in medicine chiefly as a purgative. |
| bitter apple n. See colocynth. |
| col·o·cynth (kŏl'ə-sĭnth') n. In both senses also called bitter apple.
[Latin colocynthis, from Greek kolokunthis, from kolokunthē, round gourd.] |
bitter apple
(Citrullus colocynthis), hairy-stemmed climbing vine, of the gourd family (Cucurbitaceae), native to the Mediterranean region. The colocynth has small, pale greenish yellow flowers, forked tendrils, hairy, deeply cut leaves, and rounded yellow or green fruits that have a bitter taste. The fruits yield a purgative and a derivative that is used against rodents.
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